Version 12 of XtalOpt, an evolutionary algorithm for crystal structure prediction, is now available for download from the CPC program library or the XtalOpt website, http://xtalopt.github.io. The new version includes: a method for calculating hardness using a machine learning algorithm within AFLOW-ML (Automatic FLOW for Materials Discovery — Machine Learning), the ability to predict hard materials, a generic optimizer (which allows the user to employ many optimizers that were previously not supported), and the ability to generate simulated XRD (X-ray diffraction) patterns.

Version 11 of XtalOpt, an evolutionary algorithm for crystal structure prediction, has now been made available for download from the CPC library or the XtalOpt website, http://xtalopt.github.io. Whereas the previous versions of XtalOpt were published under the Gnu Public License (GPL), the current version is made available under the 3-Clause BSD License, which is an open source license that is recognized by the Open Source Initiative. Importantly, the new version can be executed via a command line interface (i.e., it does not require the use of a Graphical User Interface). Moreover, the new version is written as a stand-alone program, rather than an extension to Avogadro.

A new version of XtalOpt, an evolutionary algorithm for crystal structure prediction, is available for download from the CPC library or the XtalOpt website, http://xtalopt.github.io. XtalOpt is published under the Gnu Public License (GPL), which is an open source license that is recognized by the Open Source Initiative. The new version incorporates many bug-fixes and new features.

A new algorithm, RandSpg, that can be used to generate trial crystal structures with specific space groups and compositions is described. The program has been designed for systems where the atoms are independent of one another, and it is therefore primarily suited towards inorganic systems. The structures that are generated adhere to user-defined constraints such as: the lattice shape and size, stoichiometry, set of space groups to be generated, and factors that influence the minimum interatomic separations. In addition, the user can optionally specify if the most general Wyckoff position is to be occupied or constrain select atoms to specific Wyckoff positions. Extensive testing indicates that the algorithm is efficient and reliable. The library is lightweight, portable, dependency-free and is published under a license recognized by the Open Source Initiative. A web interface for the algorithm is publicly accessible at http://xtalopt.openmolecules.net/randSpg/randSpg.html. RandSpg has also been interfaced with the XtalOpt evolutionary algorithm for crystal structure prediction, and it is illustrated that the use of symmetric lattices in the first generation of randomly created individuals decreases the number of structures that need to be optimized to find the global energy minimum.